Selecting contractors in the Netherlands is often done by the criterion of lowest price. This leads to a lack of innovation and a loss of quality in the construction industry. From the field of Purchasing and Procurement, we learn that there are several theories and processes for finding the best contractor for the execution of a work. One of the steps in those processes is the assessment of the contractors on the basis of specific criteria. Which criteria have to be used depends on the wishes of the client. But what are, in general, the best criteria to use? Assessment on the basis of which criterion or combination of criteria really says something on the quality of the cooperation and the final product? In this research, a comparison is made between the criteria that were found in literature with the criteria that were found during a research in the Dutch construction industry. The aim of this research is to find the best criteria for the selection of contractors in the Dutch construction industry.